Katherine Van Tassel blinked at her surroundings, the cool air of the night stinging her warm flesh. Her hair whipped around her as she observed the trees of the forest in complete and utter suspicion and suprise. Her eyes were wide and alert as the town's natural fog only seemed to be murkier, more suffocating. Her chest heaved with trepidation and she tucked a few strands of hair behind her ears.

Why in the hell was she in the forest?

When did she get to the forest?

Instead of mulling the situation over, Katherine began walking, boots crunching down on dry leaves as she sought to find her way out of the forest. As she walked, she could have sworn that she heard the sound of rushing water and surmised that she was close to the water. Nodding, she quickened her pace only to hear something behind her. She turned. Nothing there. She began walking briskly, occasionally glancing behind her to make sure there was nothing behind her. Before long, Katherine was full out jogging, trying to recall if she was going the right way to the lake house -

The ground suddenly rushed up to meet her and for a second, Katherine could only lay there, raising herself up on her hands and feeling like one of those idiot girls in a horror movie. Such a dumbass, she thought with a hint of disgust before her eyes widened and a chill trickled down her spine. Before her was the same burial site of the Hessian's head, freshly dug up. Katherine reached over to it for some reason, a strange impulse to check it...to make sure.

A horse's cry shattered her concentration and she suck up air, a strangled gasp escaping her lips. She turned over her shoulder and her heart nearly stopped. The horse's angry red eyes glared down at her with malice, causing her entire body to freeze with paralyzing fear. She gulped but could not move. The rider...the rider with the axe...his head...

There was no head.

********

Katherine Van Tassel's head shot up out of sleep and she blinked a few times, mind and body not processing anything at the moment. For a second, she forgot where she was before she blinked that last time and the plane jerked for a moment.

"Ladies and gentleman, this is your captain speaking. We are experiencing a little turbulence at the moment because of the light storm, but we will be touching down in Massachusetts in about roughly fifteen minutes." Kat calmed herself then and settled back in her seat, ignoring the slight shaking of the plane and gazed out the window. She was on her way back...back to Sleepy Hollow.

Matt Brisbane

The weathered green truck trundled up the hill slowly, complaining as loudly as it was able, under Matt's careful control. It was an old machine, and he'd been swearing to everyone who would listen that he was getting rid of it, but somehow something had always came up to stop him. In truth it was far too comfortable and familiar for him to let go of. When it kicked into neutral, which it did just as he was rounding the last curve, threatening to send him into the ravine, he knew just how hard to brake and just which way to turn to get the car to lean and the gears to shift back into place. When the battery died, as it no doubt would as soon as he arrived and pulled the key out, he knew just how to revive it, even without another car to give him a jump. It was broken, but it was broken in ways that he could handle. He was a sucker for things like that.

He was headed to the hunting cabin at the top of the mountain, where Harry and Georgia Brisbane lived 9 months out of the year. Officially their house was in town, and they spent winters there so that they wouldn't get stranded on the mountain, but it was starkly decorated, no pictures on the walls, and poorly taken care of. Their real home was their temporary home in the woods, and it would be Matt's home for the next week or so while he helped them sort out some problems they'd been having with their groundwater.

The road in front of him got darker as he passed into the thickest part of the trees, the branches above him knotting together so thickly that it may as well have been night. And then the road passed through to the other side, opening up to the clearing he knew as well as his old truck, and the tiny house that sat in the middle of it. He killed the engine and grabbed his tool belt, ready to get to work.

Amber Lacoste

Amber stared at the gleaming white tiles of the airport as she waited for her old friend, Katherine Van Tassel, to arrive back from abroad. They had grew up together here in Sleepy Hollow, the small town nurturing them in their youth. As she stared at her blurry reflection on the tiles, her hair and clothes somewhat wet from the rain that was occurring somewhat frequently these days, her umbrella dripping with water; she remembered her days as a child, exploring the town and seeing all of the secretive wonders it held...she supposed she wasn't much different now, but she wondered if she would ever leave the small town...ever experience more of the world out there and the mysteries that it held, mysteries greater than the ones from Sleepy Hollow.

She shook her head, deciding not to think of such unnecessary thoughts in a time that should be happy. Her best friend was coming back from England and she was sure she had a plethora of stories to share! With that Amber continued walking, her boots clicking on the tiled floor, she looked around at the airport, it was somewhat vacant for the most part except for some somewhat sketchy seeming people lurking about, Amber kept her eyes to the ground, putting on headphones to serve as something of an excuse for her lack of sociability. People in this town were rather social to say the least, differing from her for the most part, though she didn't mind speaking with friends.

Eventually she made it to the the arrivals area stood there among a few other people waiting to pick up their friends and family. From her bag she took out a bottle of water and a case full of pills, opening the caps she swallowed it down, making sure she was completely medicated before Katherine came. Once she was done she put her things back in her bag. She smiled softly as an enjoyable song began playing, uplifting her mood somewhat as she placed her hands on the metallic railing, waiting for Katherine to arrive.

Katherine was probably the most ecstatic person to get off the plane. As soon as it landed, her feet were tapping impatiently on the floor. She hated that she had to hate for first class and all those who sat before her to get off. If you were ready, you should be able to leave. No, for some odd reason, those in front were allowed the priviledge of exiting first. And it wasn't as if they actually moved along at a decent pace. These people pretended as if they weren't already given permission to grab their luggage and go. They took their time, began conversations, and made calls; all of which pissed Katherine off.

"Come on, people!" She hollered, getting a disapproving look from the stewardess. But at this point, who in the hell cared? Katherine wanted to be home. As crazy and as twisted as Sleepy Hollow seemed to be - look at the name! - it was home. London was fun. Home was home. And she missed the people sooo much...and no that did not mean that her fan-girly crazy crush on Matt was one of her pluses for being back in town. Liar, her mind quipped and Katherine blushed at the thought. Shaking her head, she was on her feet just as the stewardess permitted them to go.

Her small size was to her advantage because Katherine was out in about three minutes flat, squeezing through conversations and heavy overhead luggages that did not seem to want to come out. She smiled, relieved, and looked all over for Amber. Even though her brother disappointed her by pointing out that he couldn't pick her up, she was beyond happy when Amber stepped up to the plate. Phone calls could never replace the long nights these girls spent on sleepovers and just being best friends. It wasn't long before Katherine's eyes fell on a familiar head of light brown hair.

"Amber!" She screamed and waved her hands frantically, probably looking like a maniac. But, at this point, who gave a damn about self-preservation? She hoisted her bag over her shoulder and nearly sprinted across the way, nearly tackling her best friend to the ground. "HI!!! I missed you!"

Gabriel Wilson

Gabe was drifting between that space of sleep and alert. His eyes running wild beneath his eyelids, while colors painted a world in his mind. He couldn't tell if he was in the stages of being awake yet, but understood that he still had his eyes closed. He wants to stay in this space, this warm, soft, place where nothing ever goes wrong and the stresses of daily life can't reach him. But it seems there are other, greater plans for Gabe that day. A phones shrill ring awakens him fully, bringing a groan from his lips.

The first thing he realizes is A) he is still naked. Which means B) Charlie was over last night and is probably still here. He wouldn't mind of course if she were still here. She always seemed to disappear after sex - or otherwise - which left Gabe to ponder exactly what made her leave in the first place. He blinks open his eyes to see her, half dressed in one of his shirts, and looking much like a deer caught in the headlights. He doesn't ponder the meaning of her surprise. "Charlie?" He asks, though he knows its her, its the first thing that seems to flow from his mouth.

"Not trying to sneak out on me are you?" He smirks. He knows they aren't exactly committed to each other, though he's not sure what they are to each other. He knows he could and probably does love Charlie, and could fall in love with her if the chance ever arose. He knows he likes her a lot, that she's not only hot but has a firecracker of a personality that resonates well him. But he also knows he isn't quite ready to be so exclusive yet, and to be giving up the carefree lifestyle he has thus far lived.

Amber Lacoste

An announcement blared out from the loudspeaker that the plane from London had arrived but Amber had no way of hearing it, the music from her headphones were soft and gentle, but the headphones were designed in a way that it would muffle out most outside noise. Amber loved the fact that they were designed in that way...it allowed her to escape from reality when she needed to. She looked around at the scenery of the room, a few lights were softly flickering, and the people around her seemed shady and discreet...she was probably just imagining it, but the airport seemed eerier than usual.

She was in the midst of thinking to herself, somewhat impatient and wondering when Katherine would finally arrive. Her thoughts were interrupted in perhaps the most frightening way possible, Katherine slammed her into an embrace, knocking the headphones out of her ears, along with a shriek escaping from her mouth.

"HI!!! I missed you!"

Once she finally realized it was the young Van Tassel she was finally able to catch her breath, panting softly. "Oh my lord Katherine you frightened the hell out of me," she said exasperated, laughing slightly. After a while she regained her composure and hugged her best friend, laughing still. It was safe to say that Amber was easily frightened, and she wouldn't be the last to admit it. She turned off her I-Pod, putting it back into her bag after she pulled away from the hug. "I would have been less frightened were it not for the awfully eerie atmosphere we have around us," Amber said, her voice reducing to a whisper.

"Here, lets get to my car, I'd rather not stay here for long," Amber said, beginning to walk towards the exit with Katherine. "So, how was London? I'm sure you must have had a great time," Amber said cheerily, "Though I'm also sure you're looking forward to getting acquainted with Matt again," she said coyly, smirking slightly. She began taking out her car keys as they walked, feeling as though the eyes of those in the airport were on her...she was sure she took her medication...she couldn't have just been imagining it...no, it had to be in her imagination, she recognized some of the people in the airport, so there was nothing to be afraid of...

Ella Caster

Ella's backpack dug into her shoulders, and she could feel the sweat drip down the mantle of her back. She was not built for the outdoors, and neither was the lacy black sweater she'd put on that morning. It was hot and itchy, and with every step it snagged on some new branch she hadn't seen. This was absolutely miserable.

She'd been locked out of her house just a half hour before and had decided to go exploring in the neighborhood woods. It turns out you can get quite far in a half hour, and you can also get quite turned around. She wasn't totally sure where she was or which direction was home. But she knew she was going uphill. And that seemed like a good idea, at least in theory.

The trees grew close together here, like they were actively trying to keep people out, but there were a few deer paths that she could slip through. The hill got sharper and then levelled out a few times, almost like going up steps. And it was darker the further she walked. All of a sudden she heard a whack! And then a "Son of a gun!" She swivelled around but she couldn't tell which direction it had come from. Her muscles tightened up and she kept her footsteps quiet. It might be someone who could help but it also might not. After all, what kind of weirdo hangs out in the middle of the woods anyway.

"Um, maybe someone like you?" she thought to herself, and smiled a little.

She crept from tree to tree, scanning the distance looking for any movement. Out of the corner of her eye she caught a glimpse of smoke through the branches above her. And then light in front of her, bright sunlight. She tripped over a root in her confusion and stumbled out of the trees and into a huge clearing. Matt Brisbane, the guy who fixed her dad's cars on occasion, the guy who was presently knee deep in a hole in the ground and banging on pipes, stared back at her, as puzzled as if she had been a wild animal coming out of the woods.